Clean, healthy waterways are vital to our day-to-day lives. They help ensure safe drinking water, suitable habitat for fish and other wildlife, and recreational opportunities that make Maine a special place to live, work, and visit. NRCM is working hard to protect and restore Maine’s lakes, rivers, and streams, now and for generations to come.
But Maine's waterways face huge challenges. For decades, paper companies and other mills along Maine's rivers have treated these great waterways as their own private dumping grounds. The pollution they discharge prevents our native fish from thriving and impairs the quality of life for the people who live in those communities.
Pollution is one issue, dams are another. Dams continue to choke waterways across the state. While some dams are strategically located to minimize damage to fisheries and generate significant amounts of renewable electricity, other dams are obsolete or destroy fisheries resources that are worth far more than the small amount of power they generate.
One such dam was the Edwards Dam. NRCM’s work with coalition partners to remove the Edwards Dam from the Kennebec has become a national model for success. Now, NRCM and our partners in the Penobscot River Restoration Trust are working to restore this vital watershed for the wildlife and people of Maine.
NRCM has served as the voice of Maine people by advocating for clean and healthy waterways. Find out more about the issues we work on and how you can get involved to ensure clean and healthy waters for Maine.
Peter Brann and Ben Lund Receive 2004 Environmental Award
The Natural Resources Council of Maine recognizes with deep appreciation their efforts to defend Maine’s environment in the courts. Peter Brann and Ben Lund, partners in the Lewiston-based law firm of Brann & Isaacson, have brought their considerable professional skills, tenacity, and love of Maine to a necessary part of the advocacy process—using the courts Read More
Senators Advance $2 Million Spending Measure to Restore Penobscot River
News from the Penobscot Partners: A coalition of the Penobscot Indian Nation, American Rivers, Atlantic Salmon Federation, Natural Resources Council of Maine, Maine Audubon and Trout Unlimited News Release (Washington, DC; Bangor ME) Conservationists and the Penobscot Indian Nation praised Senators Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins (both R-Maine) for securing a $2 million line Read More
Maine’s Newest River
by Jeff Clark Down East magazine August 2004 Five years after the demolition of Edwards Dam, the Kennebec has rebounded. Five years ago the Edwards Dam disappeared from the Kennebec River in Augusta. Today, no one misses it. Jim Thibodeau doesn’t miss it. The removal of Edwards Dam drained seventeen miles of dead-water impoundment below Read More
Penobscot Restoration Passes Major Milestone
Statement of Laura Rose Day, Project Director, Penobscot Partners Good afternoon. Today we gather here on the banks of the Penobscot River overlooking the Veazie Salmon Club and the Veazie Dam. Both hold an important place in Maine history, and both are now at the gateway to an exciting and historic transition to a new Read More
A Tribute to the Penobscot River
Statement by Brownie Carson, NRCM executive director I am delighted to participate in this historic announcement aimed at creating a new future for the Penobscot River. The Natural Resources Council of Maine is proud of the role we have played in reaching a truly remarkable agreement that few people could have imagined was possible. The Read More
Unprecedented Project to Restore Balance between Power Generation and Environment on Penobscot River
*Natural Resources Council of Maine*American Rivers*Atlantic Salmon Federation*Penobscot Indian Nation*Trout Unlimited*Maine Audubon News release Old Town, Maine – On October 6, on the banks of the Penobscot River, PPL Corporation, conservation groups, the Penobscot Indian Nation, the State of Maine, and the U.S. Department of Interior, announced an agreement aimed at restoring sea-run fish to Read More
Down East Region Spared 84-Mile Transmission Line
NRCM news release Emera, the parent company of Bangor Hydro, has decided not to move forward at this time with a proposed 170-foot wide, 84-mile transmission line that would have bisected Hancock and Washington Counties, running between Orrington, north of Bangor, and Baileyville, on the New Brunswick border. This massive new transmission line was strongly Read More
State Reaffirms Commitment to “Wild” Allagash Wilderness Waterway
News Release AUGUSTA, MAINE – Citizens, sports people and conservationists from all parts of Maine are pleased that today the state has reaffirmed its responsibility to manage the Allagash as a “wild” river area and has committed to revise its management plan to “incorporate the intent of the federal “wild’s river designation.” The Memorandum of Read More
Kennebec River Flows Free as Edwards Dam is Removed
Dam Removal Marks Turning Point for River Restoration Nationwide Statement by Brownie Carson, NRCM Executive Director Good morning and welcome to this historic celebration for the people, wildlife and communities of the Kennebec River. My name is Brownie Carson. I am the executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine and am pleased to be Read More
Banner photo: Allagash Wilderness Waterway by Sam Horine
